Striking Back With Empire Cards

The cover and a page from the hardcover book Star Wars: The Empire 
Strikes Back: The Original Topps Trading Card Series, Volume Two.

You know time has really passed when the collectibles you purchased as a child find their way to nostalgia-inducing coffee table books. That was the feeling, along with curiosity over who might actually purchase such a publication, I experienced while wandering the shelves at a local bookseller (FYI: this post was first published 8/18/2016). In a time when the demographic (white male nerds, 45-55) to which I belong are willing to part with hard cash for a nostalgic charge, it is not surprising that the hardcover "book" Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back: The Original Topps Trading Card Series, Volume Two is now available. The book is exactly as advertised, each page consists of both the front and back of one of the 132-card base set and 33 stickers that compromised the original wax packet release back in 1980(!).

My collection of the original Empire Strikes Back Topps Picture Card Series Two.

Fortunately, I still have a complete card set (though only a partial sticker set), so can save my funds for other fanboy passions. An key aspect of trading card collecting that is lost with the transition to book form is the tactile charge of flipping each individual card over. One never knew what to expect, but it would be something exciting whether cool facts, silly quiz questions, or behind the scenes production secrets. This was, of course, prior to the advent of the internet when production info as limited to that which could be found only in magazines like Starlog or during the occasional Behind the Scenes television special. I even remember looking forward to The Price Is Right Showcase Showdowns where often one would be based on an upcoming movie and offer a clips package. Damn, those were magic days!

Here are just a few representative cards (with caption comment) from my collection:

Straight from 1980... the "title" card for my set of The Empire Strikes Back
Topps Picture Card Series 2.

Card 138: Back before any mystery was blown up by the prequel trilogy,
all things related to Boba Fett, like his ship Slave 1, were super cool!

Card 164: A suitably Eighties caption to this standard Vader shot.

Card 174: This one is interesting as it pre-dates the current practice of
referring to our robot friend by his government name R2-D2 rather than the
much more humanizing Artoo.

Card 207: Clearly the Star Quiz questions were intended to make young fanboys
like myself feel really confident in their Star Wars trivia knowledge.

Card 261: Prior to the Internet, these special cards, complete with
alliterative caption, were the best way to see any behind the
scenes shots. I still love looking at this sub-series.

Card 263: As a kid, I hated getting these cards (they lacked cool pics!) but now
appreciated knowing what cards I am trying to get when you get down to
only a few left for a complete set.

The original packs came with a single sticker so it was not so easy to get a complete set.
Sadly, I have very few of these as I used most of them spelling out cool things with
the letters, such as the word "Awesome": ah, childhood!

Back Down Disney's Black Hole

Not quite as memorable as the Millennium Falcon, the Cygnus
 rests on the edge of a... BLACK HOLE!

Prior to enacting their modern creative approach of "If you can't beat 'em, buy 'em" that paved the way to their acquisition of Pixar then Marvel and finally the Star Wars franchise rights, Disney, then not nearly the juggernaut they are now, attempted to begin their own science-fiction, adventure franchise with The Black Hole (1979).

Following the huge success of the original Star Wars in 1977, every television and movie studio was looking to get in on the profits and the House of Mouse was no different. It probably seemed an easy enough task given the superficial formula Lucas had laid out in his film. Unique, toy-ready robots? Check. Rakish, bad-boy hunk? Check. Respected European actor in a key role? Check. Potentially iconic villain-in-mask? Check.

Disney's The Black Hole, directed by Gary Nelson (whose previous effort was the original Freaky Friday in 1976), was released in 1979 featuring performances by Oscar-winning actors Maximilian Schell (Judgement at Nuremberg, 1961) and Ernest Borgnine (Marty, 1955), as well as respected actor Anthony Perkins, best know as Norman Bates in Psycho (1956). The voices of the main robot characters are provided by Roddy McDowall and Slim Pickens.

Giant bad robot Maximilian and Dr. Hans Reinhardt played by Maximilian Schell.

A financially successful cinematic space opera was not, however, meant to be. As I came across my ancient (36 years!) 80 card complete set of trading cards released by Topps in support of the film's release, my own memories of seeing The Black Hole in theaters were neither warm nor fuzzy. Apart from the robot characters voiced by familiar genre voices, the film, like the trading cards, left me cold. Of course, many years later, the awkward tone of the film (with some rather mature philosophical ideas for a Disney film) reflected in poorly designed (repetitive images and story summaries out of order) trading cards can thank the warming effect of nostalgia for my even revisiting them. Sometimes even "bad" movies or collectibles find a place in one's heart for the period of time they fleetingly capture.

B.O.B. (BiO-sanitation Battalion), a battered early model 
robot voiced by Slim Pickens.

Our heroes led by V.I.N.CENT ("Vital Information Necessary CENTralized") 
voiced by Roddy McDowall.

V.I.N.CENT. and Captain S.T.A.R.("Special Troops/Arms Regiment") 
played by Tom McLoughlin.

Maximilian listening in on Dr. Alex Durant (Anthony Perkins) 
and scientist Dr. Kate McCrae (Yvette Mimieux).

One of three color-coded puzzles to be constructed using the backs of the trading cards.

V.I.N.CENT ("Vital Information Necessary CENTralized")
in action!

The climactic battle between Maximilian and V.I.N.CENT!

I vividly remember being weirded-out by the image (strangely not captured in the trading card set) of the movie's villain, Dr. Reinhardt, encased in the robotic shell of his chief minion, Maximilian, floating above a hellish landscape at the climax of the movie. Even reading the story summary below, suggests that the filmmakers were going for something "deeper" than a standard sci-fi action/adventure movie.perhaps. The "Or should I say the beginning?" commentary points to the intention to continue the story of the crew, a sequel that has been forever left to the imagination.

On second thought, maybe these cards aren't so bad...

Oddly, the Story Summaries on the backs of some cards are 
presented out of chronological order and therefore not aligned with 
the images on the front. The warning at the bottom 
warns you about it, too!